The Hoh's Got IHN

Bad news when it comes to fish disease on the Olympic Peninsula.  Earlier this winter IHN was found on the Bogachiel and Sol Duc rivers. 

Now IHN has been found in wild stocks on the Hoh River.  This was reported by the scientists at the Steelhead Summit put on by the Steelhead Summit Alliance, Wild Steelhead Coalition and Wild Fish Conservancy.  The IHN was found in wild Hoh stocks of steelhead.  The testing isn't complete yet, so they cannot state that the IHN is the same type found in the Bogachiel and Sol Duc.

The IHN found on the Peninsula earlier this winter does have a source.  The strain originated in the Columbia River, and is the same strain that has caused outbreaks in Clearwater, Idaho hatchery steelhead.

There was great discussions on the issue and I know I gained a ton of new information from the presentations and discussions.  Kudos to the Wild Steelhead Coalition and the Wild Fish Conservancy.  Two great organizations doing good work for native fish in the Pacific Northwest.

As far as IHN, my opinion is that the managers are way too lax about outbreaks in certain geographic areas, such as Idaho and the Columbia River.  In my opinion, they need to react the same way in the Columbia system as they just did on the Olympic Peninsula, which is to destroy all eggs, juveniles, and adults.